Indiana cat missing 5 years reunited with owner

Peggy A. Bender / AP

In this April 22, 2014, photo provided by Peggy Bender, Virginia Fryback hugs her cat, Charlie, at Fort Wayne Animal Care & Control in Fort Wayne, Ind. Fryback says Charlie disappeared from her home five years ago and she thought she’d never see him again. She thanks the veterinarian who convinced her to get a microchip when Charlie was a kitten.

Associated Press

Wednesday, April 23, 2014 | 3:36 p.m.

FORT WAYNE, Ind. — A cat that went missing five years ago has been reunited with its owner in Indiana thanks to an implanted microchip.

WOWO-AM and WANE-TV report the 10-year-old cat named Charlie showed up at Fort Wayne Animal Care and Control on Monday. Workers there scanned the cat and discovered Charlie had a microchip that identified Virginia Fryback of Fort Wayne as his owner.

Fryback says Charlie disappeared from her home five years ago and she thought she'd never see him again. She thanks the veterinarian who convinced her to get a microchip when Charlie was a kitten.

The microchip might have saved Charlie's life. Shelter spokeswoman Peggy Bender says most people adopt much younger cats.

Microchips are about the size of a grain of rice and transmit information via radio waves.